Mothering Spaces
to
Mitchell Art Gallery 1110 104 Avenue (Room 11-121, Allard Hall), Edmonton, Alberta
The practice of mothering is a social and cultural act, occurring between many generations, individually and communally. These relationships revitalize communities and understandings of indigeneity through shared moments of gathering and nurturing. The visibility of a mother and her children within colonial and public spaces challenges the notions of a mother’s place within society, and forces the art sector to reevaluate its ideas of the working artist mother. The visibility of Indigenous mothering and her impactful insight into caring for a child while working in changing or challenging colonial constructs strengthens our communities and our abilities to heal and lead within acts of resilience and resistance. The moments of “empower(ing) motherhood (is) not only a practice but also an ideology that allow(s) women to assert their authority.”1
Mothering Spaces explores Indigenous methodologies of motherhood and the visibility of the mother within contemporary contexts, featuring new works from The Ephemerals (Jaimie Isaac, Niki Little and Jenny Western), Faye HeavyShield, and Tiffany Shaw-Collinge. Each artist explores their individual narrative of mothering, while showing the communal impacts of mothering in public and within colonial spaces. Anchored in the resistance and resilience of the generations prior, these artists are shaping the representation of Indigenous motherhood through their actions. By journeying with their children, through Indigenous methodologies and epistemologies of motherhood, they are helping define the complexities of what it means to be an Indigenous Mother, curator, artist, educator and writer.
Curated by Becca Taylor
1 Anderson, Kim. “Affirmations of an Indigenous Feminist.” Indigenous Women and Feminism” Politics, Activism, Culture.(2010) 81 - 91